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USA moves to 2-0 at World Championships

Given the number of upsets that have occurred in the opening days of the World Championships, U.S. coach Joe Sacco had the right to be more than satisfied with his team's 4-1 win Sunday against Latvia in

Given the number of upsets that have occurred in the opening days of the World Championships, U.S. coach Joe Sacco had the right to be more than satisfied with his team's 4-1 win Sunday against Latvia in Helsinki, Finland.

"We feel good about both of our wins," Sacco said. "One thing we are not going to do here is underestimate our opponent."

The Americans were expected to beat Latvia, a team that boasts only one NHL player. But already in the tournament, Switzerland has knocked off Sweden and Canada. The Canadian team boasts NHL stars Steve Stamkos, Eric Staal, Jordan Staal, Taylor Hall and Matt Duchene, among others.

Latvia claimed a 1-0 lead on the Americans early in the second period on a goal by Winnipeg Jets player Arturs Kulda. But Tim Stapleton scored a minute later to tie, and then Phoenix Coyotes forward David Moss put the USA in front with a power-play goal at 4:21 of the period.

"(Paul Stastny) made a good play down low and I was just able to jam away on the rebound," Moss said.

The Latvians are coached by former NHL coach Ted Nolan.

"They played hard and they made it really hard in the neutral zone," Moss said. "They were frustrating. They had four guys stacked up, and we weren't able to figure it out until later on in the game."

Stapleton played for Dinamo Minsk in the Kontinetal Hockey League this season, and his experience on the wider European ice rink seems to be paying off for the Americans. He also scored Saturday against Austria.

"He knows how to play the game," Sacco said. "He is good around the net, and he will go to the high traffic areas to score goals."

Sacco said the Americans' ability to kill off a double-minor penalty late in the second period was crucial to the win.

Midway through the third period, Nashville Predators forward Bobby Butler scored an insurance goal on the power play and Colorado Avalanche defenseman Matt Hunwick added another goal at even strength.

The USA had a 26-20 edge in shots on goal, including 14-3 in the third period.

"It's nice to score, but we have to improve our play away from the puck," Sacco said. "It's been two games in a row where we have given up a couple of breakaways. And we don't want to put our goaltenders in those situations.'

The Americans are off Monday and are scheduled to play Russia on Tuesday (NBC Sports Network, 1 p.m. ET).